First Ship Lease Trust To Distribute US$8.0 Million To Unitholders For 3Q FY09

Press release from Frontline Ltd.

• Distribution per unit (“DPU”) of US1.50¢ for 3Q FY09, comprising:
- Stub distribution of US1.27¢ for period 1 July 2009 to 16 September 2009
- DPU of US0.23¢ for period 17 September 2009 to 30 September 2009

• All lease contracts continue to perform as expected
- All lessees made full and prompt payment of lease rentals monthly in advance, including those for October 2009
- Remaining contracted revenue of lease portfolio stands at US$782 million

• 4Q FY09 DPU guidance of US1.50¢ Singapore, 23 October 2009 - FSL Trust Management Pte Ltd (“FSLTM”), Trustee-Manager of First Ship Lease Trust (“FSL Trust”), today announced the financial performance for FSL Trust for the quarter ended 30 September 2009 (“3Q FY09”).

For 3Q FY09, FSL Trust will distribute an aggregate amount of US$8.0 million or DPU of US1.50¢ to its unitholders. This is in line with the DPU guidance provided previously. Pursuant to the equity placement announced on 4 September 2009, 80 million new units were issued on 17 September 2009 and a stub distribution of US1.27¢ was declared for the period 1 July to 16 September 2009 for the then existing unitholders. The enlarged unitholder base post equity placement will receive the remaining DPU of US0.23¢ for the period 17 September to 30 September 2009.

The aggregate 3Q FY09 DPU of US1.50¢ is 51% lower than the DPU of US3.05¢ in 3Q FY08 and 39% lower than the DPU of US2.45¢ in 2Q FY09. The lower distribution amount for the quarter under review resulted in surplus cash of US$9.6 million, of which US$8.0 million has been applied towards voluntary loan prepayments on 18 September (US$0.8m) and 1 October 2009 (US$7.2m) respectively.

Mr Philip Clausius, Chief Executive Officer of FSLTM, said: “FSL Trust’s business is robust and has continued to deliver stable and predictable cash flows as the global shipping industry navigates through this challenging period. The recent corporate developments, including the loan-to-value covenant waiver arrangement with our lenders and the equity capital raising, have propelled FSL Trust to a stronger position and allows FSL Trust to evaluate a number of opportunities for the Trust to grow and further diversify its lease portfolio.”

First Ship Lease Trust